And finally, what’s the opposite of all this? Well, we could start with the ordinary degree of forgetfulness that affects most of us.

Some ways to say “to forget” are:

dearmad a dhéanamh [YAYN-uv] ar X (very lit. “to make a forgetting on X). Ex. Rinne mé dearmad air sin (I forgot that, lit. I made a forgetting on that). This is the most common phrase for this purpose, in my experience.

díth cuimhne, which means “loss of memory.” This phrase uses the word “díth” (loss, lack, need, or want), which is found especially in Northern Irish, as in the question “Cad é atá de dhíth ort?” (What do you want/need/lack?, lit. What is of lack on you?).

This last phrase is a lot like the traditional English street-cry “What d’ye lack?” Although I don’t think anyone really says it today (certainly not my local Wal-Mart greeter!), you might remember it from some earlier authors, like Oscar Wilde’s “The Fisherman and his Soul” or Richard Dering’s “The Cries of London.” Or, well, a play by Thomas Dekker that I’ll leave unnamed for this “blag a thacaíonn le teaghlaigh.”

When translating the phrase “de dhíth” into English, one usually chooses “lack,” “need,” or “want,” depending on context. One could pick more specific words, ach sin ábhar blag éigin eile!

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